End It Like Beckham

[Explorer]

End it like Beckham - in America

London (dpa) - England captain David Beckham would like to end his career playing Major League Soccer in the United States, a BBC report said Tuesday.

The Real Madrid midfielder, who still has one year to run on his contract in Spain, said he was attracted by the country's passion for sport.

"At some stage, playing in America is possible," the 30-year-old was on Tuesday quoted as saying by the BBC's sport website.

"For me, America's so passionate and I'd like to be a part of that.

"I've one year left at Real, and maybe two more after that, but things can change in football and the American league does interest me," added Beckham.

"I want to be part of a country that is passionate about sport. I've got my academy in LA which is important to me because that is my life after the game.

"America for me is one of the most passionate places. There is an incredible feeling around the country."

http://www.bangkokpost.com/breaking_news/b...ws.php?id=90328

Explorer

[Sir Burr]

Right. The trouble is, is that the US isn't passionate about football (soccer).

I remember watching Peter Lorimer playing for the Vancouver White-caps back in 1982.

Sad to see a legend fall so far.

[Simmo]

Right. The trouble is, is that the US isn't passionate about football (soccer).

I remember watching Peter Lorimer playing for the Vancouver White-caps back in 1982.

Sad to see a legend fall so far.

I think you'd be suprised of the popularity of soccer in the Southern States especially amongst the growing Hispanic population. My cousin living near Austin, Texas tells me the EPL & particularly the Spanish League has a growing following there. Clubs like Chelsea are looking at the U.S as the big growth market for merchandise , tours & TV deals.

Signing a big media profile player like Beckham could be a big boost for the league.

[Bull]

No trouble there at all...

Both, Beckham and the US share one common passion...

$$$$$

Bull

[game4shame]

The Real Madrid midfielder, who still has one year to run on his contract in Spain, said he was attracted by the country's passion for sport.

"For me, America's so passionate and I'd like to be a part of that.

"I've one year left at Real, and maybe two more after that, but things can change in football and the American league does interest me," added Beckham.

"I want to be part of a country that is passionate about sport. I've got my academy in LA which is important to me because that is my life after the game.

"America for me is one of the most passionate places. There is an incredible feeling around the country."

can anyone guess the word David learned today?

[Sir Burr]

I think Aussies in general are more passionate about sport than Americans.

They certainly are sore losers though.

[Spit the Dog]

Brand Beckham are obviously trying establish themselves in the American market. There is no other reason for Beckham to end his playing career stateside.

If what Beckam says is true and he wants to meet passionate football supporters then why doesn't he sign for BEC Tero here in Thailand. The Thai public would adore him far more passionately than the American public would ever do.

[Indo-Siam]

Back in June 1975, I remember watching Pele play his first game with the New York Cosmos team at Rikers Island outside NY City. The line of cars going across the bridge leading to the small stadium was about five km long - the car I was in (comtaing half a soccer team) had a leaking radiator, and we basically had to push it the last two km.

Pele was already old, and his injuries from a long career were catching up with him - but he still played well, and gave "football" in the USA a big shot in the arm by coming to America.

I'm sure it was largely about money - as it will be for Bekham - but, maybe that's not the whole story. If you are REALLY good, and you really love the game, then there has to be a voice in the back of your head saying "what can I do to expand the role of football in the world's richest country - a country which still doesn't give football any real respect?"

Basically, there are no great players playing in America - and that stifles the expansion of the game's prestige in the USA. If some great players spend some time playing in America, it will draw out better play from the rest of the players, and attract more attention to the game - thus drawing in better talent at the bottom of the field.

Cheers!

Indo-Siam

[Chaiisoot]

To tell you the truth, I myself never heard of David Beckham until I read that he married that Posh Spice Girl a few years ago....

If you came over here and ask most Americans, probably 9 out of ten would not know who David Beckham is.

Hard to Believe, but true.

I'm sure it was largely about money - as it will be for Bekham - but, maybe that's not the whole story. If you are REALLY good, and you really love the game, then there has to be a voice in the back of your head saying "what can I do to expand the role of football in the world's richest country - a country which still doesn't give football any real respect?"

Indo-Siam

I beg to differ...We Americans give football lots of respect......

Just not to Soccer......

Maybe Beckham international prestige will somehow raise the profile of the sport when he comes here to the U.S., because truth be told, it is not played or popular at all, except for little kids, rich prep students and Latin american immigrants.....

[Old Croc]

The Real Madrid midfielder, who still has one year to run on his contract in Spain, said he was attracted by the country's passion for sport.

"For me, America's so passionate and I'd like to be a part of that.

"I've one year left at Real, and maybe two more after that, but things can change in football and the American league does interest me," added Beckham.

"I want to be part of a country that is passionate about sport. I've got my academy in LA which is important to me because that is my life after the game.

"America for me is one of the most passionate places. There is an incredible feeling around the country."

can anyone guess the word David learned today?

He must know 12 or 13 by now. If only he could say them in a normal voice.

[Narachon]

Let's see now..... A " football in America " thread....

To tell you the truth, I myself never heard of David Beckham until I read that he married that Posh Spice Girl a few years ago....

If you came over here and ask most Americans, probably 9 out of ten would not know who David Beckham is.

Hard to Believe, but true.

True, True.....

Funny you sould say that, I myself never heard of David Beckham until that "Bend it like Beckham" movie came out a few years ago with that Indian girl and Ms. Kiera.

I'm sure it was largely about money - as it will be for Bekham - but, maybe that's not the whole story. If you are REALLY good, and you really love the game, then there has to be a voice in the back of your head saying "what can I do to expand the role of football in the world's richest country - a country which still doesn't give football any real respect?"

Indo-Siam

I beg to differ...We Americans give football lots of respect......

Just not to Soccer......

Yeah, the term "Football" means a completely different game here in America...

Maybe Beckham international prestige will somehow raise the profile of the sport when he comes here to the U.S., because truth be told, it is not played or popular at all, except for little kids, rich prep students and Latin american immigrants.....

Yeah, Soccer is a "Gateway sport" that is taught to kids here in America, so that we learn how to play in sports teams at an early age, it's like "training wheels" in able to play other sports when one gets older. Once you reach a certain age, you stop playing soccer, and graduate to " adult " sports ( Basketball, Baseball, American Football, Track, etc. ). That is the thing that most non-American sports fans don't realize - The image of Soccer here ( what I will call for sake of argument "Global Football" ) is percieved as childish ,feminine and foreign. But if one can somehow change that image here in the U.S., that would be an incredible event in the history of sports, not to mention VERY lucrative moneywise...

Just image if what would happen if American Sports fans cared one lick about the World Cup.....

I agree, soccer ( global fooball ) popularity in America is somewhere far behind Ice hockey - yet ahead of Curling, Synchronized Swimming , and Team Boomerang throwing...

I myself loved playing soccer as a teen,( yes, I admit I was one of theose "Rich Prep school students" Chaiisoot mentions.. ) One of the two sports I was able to play really well ( the other was Baseball , both School and Little Leauge ) I sucked in ( American ) football and baseketball ( but I LOVE watching them on TV, unlike, ironically soccer! )

Mr. Beckham will have a big job ahead of him - hope he manages to succeed where Pele didn't!

I wish him all the luck!

[Chaiisoot]

You played soccer as a teenager?..... So do you still play for the other team?

Just kidding!

Anyway, nice post Narachon, my fellow American!

Here is a article that beautifully illustrates the exact points brought up in your posts and mine about how soccer is in America. That Beckham guy is going to have a tough time converting the masses here that soccer can be played for and by adult men....

MLS finally growing up and getting places of its own

By NANCY ARMOUR, AP National Writer

April 21, 2006

Soccer, as any American will tell you, isn't football. And it certainly isn't baseball.

Yet for its first decade of existence, Major League Soccer played most of its games in stadiums made for those other sports. Sharing turf is nothing new in pro sports, but it's a little hard for a new league to be taken seriously when it's spending so much time at somebody else's house.

If soccer is ever going to develop a following in the United States close to what it has in the rest of the world -- or grow beyond a kids' sport -- MLS has to find better ways to set itself apart.

And that starts with its teams moving out and getting places of their own.

MLS is in the midst of a building boom that could be as vital for the game in the United States as the creation of the league itself. Four of the 12 teams are now playing in stadiums built specifically for soccer, and the Chicago Fire moves into its new home in June.

Soccer stadiums are currently under construction in Denver and Toronto, and there are plans for ones to be built in the next four years in Salt Lake City, Washington and the New York area. That would be 10 soccer-specific stadiums by 2010, all built since 1998.

Ten buildings may not seem like much, but they're a visible sign that professional soccer has a presence in the United States. And a lasting one, at that.

"Throughout the history of pro sports, facilities have played a very important role in connecting fans to their team," MLS commissioner Don Garber said. "Think of the Brooklyn Dodgers and Ebbets Field. Think of Wrigley Field and the Cubs. They're intrinsically linked. It's where the shared experience takes place.

"And up until very recently, we had to share that experience with many other tenants."

Soccer remains something of an enigma in the United States. It's wildly popular as a kids' rec sport, with boys and girls of all ages playing in every corner of the country. It's so ingrained that the term "soccer mom," not "baseball mom" or "football mom," is part of our jargon.

But the MLS lags behind the NFL, major league baseball and the NBA when it comes to interest and popularity. Those millions of kids who play don't automatically create a huge fan base. Playing in stadiums built for other sports isn't the only reason, but it doesn't help.

There is, first of all, the economic factor. Having your own stadium means you get all the revenue generated from tickets, parking and concessions. You don't have to split it or, worse, give it all to somebody else.

It's no surprise that the first team in league history to make a profit was the Los Angeles Galaxy. The Galaxy moved into The Home Depot Center, a soccer-specific stadium, in June 2003, and declared a profit that season. The Galaxy also has ranked first in attendance the last three seasons, averaging more than 21,900 fans a game.

"As we've been building these stadiums ... it's really changed the economics for Major League Soccer," Garber said. "Because now we're able to capture far more of the revenue."

Then there's the image issue. Average attendance at an MLS game last year was about 15,000. While that's a respectable crowd in a place that seats between 20,000 and 30,000, it looks pitiful in an NFL stadium.

And no matter how hard you try, you'll never be anything more than a visitor when you're playing in a stadium originally built for somebody else. Though the Fire spent most of its first eight seasons at Soldier Field, the stadium was the home of the Chicago Bears. The Fire just happened to play there occasionally.

Carving out an identity is tough enough for a new team or a new league. Trying to do it in someone else's shadow is next to impossible.

"We were, literally, guests in somebody else's house. Our players felt that way and our fans certainly felt that way," Garber said. "We now have our own homes. We now have bricks and mortar in the ground. It provides a far greater level of perceived stability for the league.

"It's going to be an important chapter in the history book of professional soccer in this country."

Of course, fancy stadiums alone won't elevate the MLS to major-league status in the country's consciousness. But it might help make the climb a little easier.